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Coaches coming loaded with questions to Johnny Manziel's pro day

ORLANDO — Mike Zimmer will show up at Johnny Manziel's pro day workout on campus at Texas A&M today acting as much like private investigator. Zimmer, the new coach of the Minnesota Vikings, will watch each of

Coaches coming loaded with questions to Johnny Manziel's pro day

ORLANDO — Mike Zimmer will show up at Johnny Manziel's pro day workout on campus at Texas A&M on Thursday acting as much like private investigator.

Zimmer, the new coach of the Minnesota Vikings, will watch each of Manziel's 60 or so throws, along with coaches, general managers and scouts from dozens of NFL teams.

He'll look at Manziel's footwork and his drop backs and his release point. He'll try to judge Manziel's accuracy and see how the quarterback has improved since his last collegiate game. All of these things will matter, sure, but maybe not as much as what Zimmer will find out about Manziel once he leaves the Aggies' field house.

"I want to talk to the custodian. I want to talk to his teammates. I want to talk to his landlord. I want to find out those things," Zimmer said Wednesday. "We'll know what kind of football player he is by the end of the day and how he does with all that other stuff, but it's all the other intangible things."

None of the top-tier quarterbacks in May's draft will receive quite as much scrutiny as the Manziel, the 2012 Heisman trophy winner, because of his improvisational style of play on the field and his often-controversial persona off it.

"We research them all the same, but that's something that's been well publicized," Cleveland Browns coach Mike Pettine said of Manziel, who was investigated and briefly suspended last year because of an autograph scandal. "Some guys' folders are a little bit thicker than others, but I don't think there is anything that is alarming there."

Several NFL coaches instead mentioned another, old-school quarterback red flag when it comes to Manziel: At the combine last month, Manziel was measured at just under six-feet tall.

"There are a lot of quarterbacks, but not a lot who succeed with his stature," Zimmer said. "You're going against the odds a little bit with a guy like that, but the game has changed so much now, and the offense in the NFL is a lot more like college football, spread out and opened up, so I believe he'll have a career."

Pettine believes the same, but he said there are questions about how Manziel's game will translate to the NFL level. Manziel might have been the most electrifying player in college football the past two years, but he doesn't look or play much like the quarterbacks who have a long history of success in the NFL.

"The thing with him is, can he play in structure? His plays are made when he gets out of structure," Pettine said. "I don't think there is any reason to think that he can't. The questions that people have are, if you try to force him to be that classic pocket quarterback, will that affect his ability to make those plays that he's made? And I think the kid understands that."

It might be difficult for Manziel to answer those questions on Thursday during a scripted throwing session. He will face no pass rush, no blitzes. His receivers, including Mike Evans who is also auditioning Thursday, won't have to fight off any defensive backs.

"It's on air. There's no defense rushing him but you can look at the mechanics and how the ball is delivered and where the ball is placed for a receiver," said Houston Texans coach Bill O'Brien, whose team is also searching for a starting quarterback.

Manziel may benefit from the Russell Wilson effect. There were questions about Wilson two years ago, too, especially about his size that caused Wilson to fall to the Seattle Seahawks in the third round. That Wilson won the starting job by the Week 1 of his rookie year and was a Super Bowl champion by the end of his second season is a reminder to teams of just how many factors, not just physical ones, that are important to finding a franchise-caliber quarterback.

"We want a guy that is accountable, good character guy, pocket passer, good decision maker, good teammate, coachable, smart, tough physically and mentally," O'Brien said.

"Whether he's 6-5 or 5-10, does he have these things and like I said, smart? Is he going to be able to process what we do? In this league, you have to be able to throw the ball accurately, so that's a big, big deal."